Prof Mkhize recognised for groundbreaking work in indigenous African health

THE University of KwaZulu-Natal recently honoured renowned African spiritualist, author and scholar, Prof Bhedlindaba “VVO” Mkhize, one of this year’s 30 top researchers in the institution.

- SANDILE NGINDI

RENOWNED African spiritualist, author and scholar, Prof Bhedlindaba “VVO” Mkhize has attributed his recognition by UKZN to the work of the ancestors. | INGONO YOMSAMO SABC1

In a show of affirming the importance of indigenous knowledge systems in South African higher education curricula, UKZN has praised Prof Mkhize (68) for his distinguished peer-reviewed publications written in Zulu and focused mainly on themes pertaining to indigenous African health and religion.

Mkhize, who is an honorary professor in African Healing, Religion and Ancestral Studies in the School of Religion at UKZN, is the author of close to 20 titles in his long-running popular umsamo book series.

A practicing inyanga (traditional healer), he runs a successful consultancy at Albert Falls in the Kwa-Zulu-Natal midlands, also home to Umsamo Africa Institute dedicated to ethnographic research and writing on indigenous African healing and spirituality.

“Prof Mkhize is one of those academics who have excelled by producing lots of books in his area of traditional medicine, which is a new and unexplored area of knowledge,’ said Prof Simangaliso Kumalo, director of the Centre for Constructive Theology at UKZN.

“He has produced more books than most academics in the university, some who are full-time researchers and have been part of the system for decades”